If I didn’t see it for myself, I would have though that the baby bird needed to be put back in it’s nest. For the last 4 weeks, I have been watching a pair of cardinals out my kitchen window. They set up house in a bush to the left of my kitchen window. The bush is a Dracaena reflexa ‘Variegata’ called Song of India. In most areas of the country this would be a houseplant. Here, they are just another outside bush (see below, behind the yellow orchid). While we have had birds nest in our yard before. This was my first songbird family. I was excited and afraid for them.
We spent the first week making sure that the bush was perfect. When the lawn service showed up, I was sure that they were out. But, they both came back. The bright red male feeding the female while she laid eggs. I kept trying to see if everything was ok, but had trouble seeing from the window. And whenever I went around the side of the house, both of them flew to the fence and tried to get my attention away from the nest. And then the other birds and Chloe would get curious, so I tried to avoid the side yard.
This week, we had yard service on Monday and pressure washers on Tuesday… I was sure nesting would be over. But, this morning both parents were busy feeding babies. The whole family was loud today. I could see movement at the top of the bush. And then I could see one of the babies! Just sitting there. Both parents were hopping up and down in the bushes across the path. Then, the baby cardinal fledged… just like that. It was the ugliest baby bird I have ever seen. No tail feathers, just a round semi-bald fuzzy ball sitting on the pathway. Had I not seen it myself, I would have thought it fell. The parents flew up and down in front of the baby, I think they were showing it what to do. Then, it flew…all of 18 inches and maybe 3 inches off the ground. A couple of small flights later, it vanished from my sight. The parents can obviously still see it, they are back to bringing food. Now in both the bush (I think there are two more) and on the ground around the white bird of paradise.
I have read that the baby cardinals should be able to fly well enough after 24 hours. I am keeping Chloe inside for the next couple of days. I feel like I have invested enough time and effort on the baby cardinals that if my dog ate them, I would be more than a little upset. While I love hearing them and they are beautiful to see, I think I can do without a bunch of stressful songbird nests in the future.
Chance Objects 